In the social sciences there is a discernible trend towards emphasizing
the ethical dimension in the analysis of society, or adding one where it had
been absent in discussions of the past. Such analyses can be further
enhanced by a comparative view. As such, the German Association for Social
Science Research on Japan (VSJF) decided to focus on “ethics” as the general
theme for its annual conference in 2011.

This volume contains selected papers from the conference, which cover a
wide range of ethical issues in science and society. Fields like robotics
and bioethics, as well as education, civil society and ethical consumption
are considered. The regional perspective goes beyond Japan in some of the
contributions to include examples from Germany and China.